Guwahati: Heads rolled in the inland water transport (IWT) department on Thursday with transport minister Chandra Mohan Patowary announcing the suspension of four officials over Wednesday's boat capsize in the Brahmaputra here.
Patowary said executive engineer of Guwahati division Vikramaditya Choudhury, sectional officer-in-charge of Guwahati ferry ghat Purnananda Das and two section assistants Dharmeswar Baishya and Jagadish Das were suspended.
He said plying of mechanised country boats ( bhutbhuti) on the Brahmaputra between North Guwahati and Guwahati would remain suspended during the rainy season but three new vessels for ferry service would be introduced this month. Ten additional buses of the Assam State Transport Corporation will also ply on the route.
Patoway said the transport department is ready with a draft bill for the constitution of a regulatory authority. The Assam Inland Water Transport Reorganisation Bill, which aims to regulate ferry services in the state, will be tabled in the Assembly in the forthcoming session. The bill proposes to constitute a Regulatory Authority, Assam Shipping Company and Assam Port Company for management of the respective sectors.
Henceforth, registration, timely renewal of registration and fitness certificate will be mandatory for all vessels.
River police arrested the driver of the capsized boat, Nuruddin Ahmed, and his helper Halem Ali for "negligence" after they surrendered at North Guwahati police station on Wednesday night. The owner of the boat, Kamal Das, was arrested on Thursday.
The river police have registered a suo motu case at its Sualkuchi police station.
Rescue operations will resume at 7am on Friday.
North Guwahati residents, under the banner of Nadi Jatri Suraksha Samiti, filed an FIR at North Guwahati police station, blaming negligence and lack of supervision over private boats by the Directorate of Inland Water Transport for the accident. Search and rescue operations were resumed at 5.30am on Thursday. "The search for missing persons remained futile till Thursday afternoon," a police source said.
The police said 22 people were rescued and two bodies retrieved on Wednesday while two persons have been reported missing so far. According to a register maintained by the inland water transport department, there were 24 passengers, the boat driver, his helper, seven motorcycles and two bicycles on board.
Cotton University students and teachers paid tributes to Ankita Baruah and Dimpi Bora, students of the university, who died in the accident. Students staged protest outside the Kamrup (metro) deputy commissioner's office and blocked the arterial MG Road. They demanded bus services from Cotton University to North Guwahati.
Health and family welfare minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday visited Dimpi's house in North Guwahati and that of Ankita in Jalukbari. He announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for each family. He also met the family members of the two missing persons, Rahul Ali of Changsari and Kamal Das.
